The Association for Visual Arts is pleased to present the 24th Annual 4 Bridges Arts Festival at the First Horizon Pavilion on the southside of downtown Chattanooga this April.
The festival will take place April 20 & 21. Gates will be open 10am to 5pm both days, and admission is $5 for adults and FREE for children under 18.
We encourage everyone to come enjoy browsing and shopping with artists from around the country, who create beautiful work in a variety of media and price ranges – there’s something for everyone!
2024 marks the 24th year of the festival, which has been voted as one of the best art festivals in the country by Sunshine Artist magazine (a trade magazine for art festivals) several times. The Association for Visual Arts is thrilled to bring this event back each year, as the Chattanooga community always shows a high level of support for the independent artists who come to the show.
140 artists will be at the festival this year from 27 states, including over a dozen from the Chattanooga area. The artists will bring work in a variety of media, including painting, ceramics, textiles, jewelry, wood, glass, photography, and much more. The shopping experience at 4 Bridges is unparalleled, whether you are looking for a new piece for your living room wall, a gift for a friend, or simply a treat for yourself.
In addition to the art, there will be a great roster of live musicians playing throughout the weekend, including Luke Simmons, Amber Fults, Rick Rushing III, the Chattanooga Girls Choir, and Maria Jordania. And, there will be special activities at the Pavilion for kids! SPLASH Youth Arts Workshop will be back leading hands-on painting activities for children throughout both days.
And, the festival is very proud to have local artist/author/performing artist Andrea Zoppo on board as our children’s performing artist-in-residence for the weekend. She and her troupe of performers will put on a special performance of her show “Weather the Weather,” an imaginative, playful, slightly surreal exploration of how weather affects us, which Andrea compares to old-fashioned Cirque-style clown performances.
Andrea will also be set up for face painting on both Saturday and Sunday afternoon inside the pavilion. To round out the festival experience, there will be a great array of food trucks available, including coffee, multiple lunch options, and delicious desserts and snacks.
A Preview Party will be held on Friday, April 29, for invited sponsors, patrons, and their guests, as well as others who wish to purchase a $125 ticket to support festival operations and AVA’s year-round programs supporting artists in Chattanooga.
The Preview Party will be a great way to get a sneak preview and an early opportunity to shop with the festival artists, in a great party atmosphere with catered food and special beer, wine, and cocktails.
Details on the whole festival, as well as how to purchase tickets for the Preview Party, are available on our website at 4bridgesartsfestival.org.
Our poster artist this year is glass artist Terri Foster of Marietta, GA, whose platter titled “Tequila Sunrise” uses tiny rods of red and blue glass fused to form stripes of color that when laid out in their final pattern, resemble a woven basket.
For more information about 4 Bridges Arts Festival, visit our website at 4bridgesartsfestival.org.